“Good products and services are like brushing your teeth. You’re expected to do it every day. You don’t get extra credit.” — paraphrasing Geoffrey Moore

We don’t talk about companies that we like. We don’t talk about companies that deliver quality service, day in and day out, for a reasonable price. We expect that. You’ve never called a friend and said “Did you know that Ritz hotels are really nice?” You need to give people a reason to talk about you. Word of mouth starts with the topic of conversation. (It doesn’t start with a MySpace page or a viral video). Bland companies never give us a reason to talk, so we don’t talk about them.

There are seven emotions that cause someone to make a recommendation:

We talk about companies that give us a reason to talk.

Companies with personality constantly start conversations. These conversations lead to referrals. Referrals make you money.

A customer gained through word of mouth is free. As you get more and more customers for free, you change the fundamental cost structure of your company. And you can always beat a competitor who is paying for customers with expensive advertising. This is a competitive advantage that is permanent and sustainable.
Zappos gets 75% of their customers for free through word of mouth. Their competitors pay an average of $30 per new customer. That in a huge amount of free cash that Zappos can reinvest in customer service, innovation, and fun. Which furthers their advantage. They will sell $1 billion of shoes this year.

Start asking: Why would anybody talking about you?